The Pickens sentinel. [volume] (Pickens, S.C.) 1871-1903, 1887-10-27
THE MANDOLIN.
A Pleasing italian Musical Instrument
that is Just Now In Fashion.

that IL JuSG NOW In Fashion.
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The mandolin is the reigning fash
ionable caprice, having quite superseded
tho banjo in the esteem Of the ladies.
That it should have done so is by no
means strange, for it Is really charm
ing little instrument when ut all de-
Gently played, is not vory difficult TO
loarn, and has a good deal moro style
and finish about it than the banjo has.
However the latter may be adorned
with nickel-plating, mother-of-pearl,
and all sorts of gaudy ornamentation,
it has a plebeian look about it and sug~
gests the idea of q iield-hand in his
Sunday suit
The only unpleasant feature about it
to the learner is the knife e-blade-lko
sharpness of its fine wire strings. There
are eight strings, in pairs, all of steel
wire. Two pairs arc wound with Ger
man silver, and arc not SO cruel rs the
others, but unwound four, hardly thicker
than horse hairs, seem to cut to the
bono the finger ends that press them
down upon the frets. OF course that
pain and trouble ends when each
finger of the left hand is tipped with a
bony, callous spot, and one must expect
| some such trouble in forming n close
| acquaintance with any stringed instr,l-
ment. When nature has provided that
| protection, the mandolin player, if an
| expert, can produce some very pleasing
effects by producing the tones by per-
cussion on the strings over tho frcts,
instead of by strumming with bit of
tortoise shell hold between tho thumb
and toreiinger of the right hand, which
is the ordinary way of playing.
The Spanish mandola is much like
the Italian mandolin in its gen.
eral features, but has important
differences from it nevertheless. It's
body is shallower, shaped moro like the
bowl of spoon than the half of an egg
divided lengthwise, which is tho form
of the instrument beloved in Naples
and Rome; its strings arc of catgut in
stead of steel, and its tone is not so
sharp and incisivo. Either mandola or
mandolin, however, has q surprising
volume of sound for so small u body,
and dominates plcasingly the tones of
guitar, or even those of piano
Expert players have n way Of main
tanning an increasing tremolando by
keeping the little instrument in con-
stantly quivering motion whilo they arc
executing q solo, that at least looks as
if it would be rather hard to effect and
harder yet to continue for any length of
time, but the lengthening of vibrations
thus achieved prettily supplies tho lack
of supporting instrument The power
of controlling the volume of sound in q
creScendo or dIminuendo possessed bv q
skllful performer is really surprising
and extremely effective in rendition OF
the peculiar passionate and scnsuous
music TO which the mandolin is best
adapted
While the mandolin is easy to learn,
up to certain point, it is, like all
seemingly simple instruments, very
difficult to develop to its highest artistic
capabilities, and the Italian who has
achieved complete mastery Of it not
only very justly respects hmscl! highly,
but is even respected in an extraordinary
degree by his countrymon. The best
players arc said to come from Naples,
where native who does not at least
think that he can play upon the man
doiin is 4 curiosity. Here in New York
we have not many who dcscrvcdly rank
high rs experts. Prof. Dominica Tip.
aldi is regarded as 4 very correct and
artistic performer, but in expression and
delicacy of tone shading SignOr +. a.
Errlco, who is proprietor OF an Italian
art and curiosity store in John street
and only an amateur mandolinist, is
deemed by critics the most finished
artist here. But inferior players find
as much employment as they want in
teaching the mandolin to the young
men and women of Gotham's upper
tcn," and from present indications the
instrument will be the rage when fash
ion returns 10 the town with the early
frostS.
A good mandolin costs from $50 tc
$50, and all procurrble here are I'M
ported from Naplcs.--N. Y SIN.